Monkeypox spreads in Europe when Sweden, Italy, France and Belgium confirm the first cases
Smallpox infections have spread to at least seven European countries as Sweden, France, Belgium and Italy have been the latest to report their first cases of the viral infection.
The new cases involve increased global transmission of the disease, with infections appearing in the United States and even Australia.
Monkey pox is endemic to some African countries, although isolated cases have been found off the continent in the past.
Health officials across Europe are now competing to detect the growing spread of the disease, and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) says they are “monitoring the situation closely”.
Italy’s first case of smallpox was discovered at Spallanzani Hospital in Rome, which has two other suspected cases, local health officials confirmed on Thursday.
The infection was discovered in an individual who had come from the Canary Islands. The person is kept isolated.
Sweden has also confirmed a case of smallpox in Stockholm. The infected person “is not seriously ill, but has received care”, says the Public Health Agency in a statement.
Swedish health authorities are conducting an investigation to find out if there are more cases in the country. It is not known how the person became infected.
France confirmed a case of the virus in the Paris region on Friday, several French media reported.
And Belgium also reported its first two cases of smallpox, diagnosed by virologists in different cities, Reuters reported.
The UK announced its first case on May 7 and now has nine cases of the virus, prompting authorities to offer a smallpox vaccine to some healthcare professionals and others who may have been exposed.
Smallpox belongs to the same virus family as smallpox, a disease that was eradicated in 1980, but which gives milder symptoms.
Monkeypox, which is common in remote parts of central and western Africa, has caused concern around the world as the disease seems to be spreading among people who do not have a travel history to Africa.
The virus originates in wild animals such as rodents and primates and sometimes jumps to humans. The first symptoms of monkey pox include fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, swollen lymph nodes, chills and fatigue.
A rash can develop, which often begins on the face of the infected person before it begins to spread to other parts of the body, including the hands, feet and genitals.
The British health authorities said that cases are mainly reported among homosexual or bisexual men. Mateo Prochazka, an epidemiologist for infectious diseases at the UK Health Security Agency, said the trend was “very indicative of the spread of sexual networks”.
The ECDC, the EU’s health authority, said on Thursday that it will publish a first risk assessment report “early next week” when cases continue to spread.
It recommended that all “suspected cases be isolated and tested and reported immediately”.
Health authorities in Spain confirmed seven cases of the infection, while announcing 23 suspected cases transmitted through sexual contact.
“In general, its transmission is via respiratory droplets, but the characteristics of the 23 suspected infections indicate that it is passed on through body fluids during sexual intercourse (sic),” they said in a statement.
“All are young adult men and most of them are men who have sexual relations with other men, but not all,” Elena Andradas, head of public health in the Madrid region, told Cadena Ser radio.
Portugal has five confirmed cases of smallpox in young men, while the authorities are investing another 15 suspected cases. All cases were identified around the capital Lisbon.
The United States reported its first cases of smallpox in eastern Massachusetts on Wednesday to a man who had a travel history to Canada, which has also confirmed two cases of the virus.
Authorities in the province of Quebec are investigating 17 suspected cases with symptoms linked to monkey pox.
“Tonight, the province of Quebec was informed that two samples received by the NML (National Microbiology Laboratory) have tested positive for smallpox. These are the first two cases confirmed in Canada,” the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) said in a statement.
Australia reported its first case of monkey pox on Friday in a person with a travel history to the UK.